


Swords

by edgy_fluffball



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Breaking Andy, Friendship, Give Nile A Sword, I Have Thoughts On Crusaders, Joe Loves To Tease Nicky, Killing Time, Swordfighting, Weapons, pun intended
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-22
Updated: 2020-08-22
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:41:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26043652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/edgy_fluffball/pseuds/edgy_fluffball
Summary: She takes her request to Nicky who, she thinks, will be the least likely to laugh in her face at the ridiculousness of the matter as Andy is probably prone to do, won't even smirk or give her that raised eye-brow Joe has perfected. No, she asks Nicky because she has spent days tossing and turning, thinking about it and coming to a conclusion and he is the one who will take it seriously."Can you teach me how to use a sword?"
Relationships: Nile Freeman & Nicky | Nicolo di Genova
Comments: 19
Kudos: 162





	Swords

**Author's Note:**

> I typed this directly into tumblr this morning, didn't even realise how long it was. This was supposed to be a mini blurb.

She takes her request to Nicky who, she thinks, will be the least likely to laugh in her face at the ridiculousness of the matter as Andy is probably prone to do, won't even smirk or give her that raised eye-brow Joe has perfected. No, she asks Nicky because she has spent days tossing and turning, thinking about it and coming to a conclusion and he is the one who will take it seriously.

"Can you teach me how to use a sword?"

She is sitting on the roof of the small cabin in the woods they are at, there is a plate of biscuits next to her and Nicky has thrown her a Thermos with coffee, too, before climbing up himself. Andy and Joe went into the next town to get groceries some hours ago and it is likely to take them some more, leaving them to whatever they can come up with. Nile has settled on taking one of the books from the shelf to read.

"You want to learn how to use a sword? Why? It's not very practical and you are very good in hand to hand combat. With a bit of training, you'll only get better."

She sighs, steeling herself to list off all the arguments she has come up with, "I need something else, in case I can reach or shoot someone for whatever reason. The sword gives you more range, doesn't it? It's just as lethal but quicker and quieter, doesn't draw too much attention -"

Nicky scoffs at that but there's no venom behind it, it's a good-natured scoff that is closer to a chuckle. Nile decides not to count it as laughing at her.

"Try walking through 21st century Sudan with it on your belt. People only don't ask because they are afraid."

"I don't know, we might have a mission at a Ren faire or medieval market someday," she knows it's a risk to bring those up, both Nicky and Joe feel strongly about the historical inaccuracies.

He doesn't say anything, just takes the biscuit plate away from her and that's as bad as Nicky's disapproval for her words can get. She returns her gaze out into the woods, trying to ignore the urge to press and ask again.

Nicky finishes off the biscuits to teach her a lesson but there were only two left and he hasn't had any before. He slides down from the roof, lands on the ground and disappears out of her line of sight. Nile hears him rummage around for a bit and settles into her spot in the setting sun again.

At least she tries.

"Are you coming?" Nicky yells up at her and her eyes snap back open.

He stands in the middle of the clearing, two swords in his hands. She knows one of them, it's the one they went back to Paris for, the one he carries on missions. The other one looks similar but not quite. She can't pin-point the difference.

"What?"

"You said you wanted to learn," Nicky twirls his sword in one hand and Nile feels her face heat up at the ease with which he moves, "come down here and I'll show you a few moves."

She has never moved so fast in her life.

By the time the car pulls back into the clearing, Nicky has shown her how to hold and lift the sword and which stance to take. It's heavy and hard work, and Nile isn't doing half as well as she'd wanted to do but Nicky is a patient teacher and waits for her to adjust her grip every time she slips. He has explained the different directions a strike can go, has named them "dwarf," "giant," and "boar," and called some out for her to take.

When Andy and Joe get out of the car, they are already laughing and Nile wants to drop the sword and run inside before they can tell her how silly she is being for wanting to learn sword fighting. She stays, though, lowering the weapon instead of dropping it, watching instead of running. Joe howls with laughter and says something in one of the many languages they share that she doesn't understand and Andy doubles over, holding her middle as she tries to keep from falling. Nile thinks it must have been quite a joke for her to lose control that much.

She looks over to Nicky, ready to tell him to forget it, she can stick to firearms. The man has lowered the sword he used to show her the moves and scowls, almost pouts at the two others still busy gasping for air. Maybe it's not her after all, she thinks.

"Oh come on, I just asked him to show me how to use a sword," she sees the way Andy is holding onto Joe for stability and wishes they would stop.

"That's not it," Joe pants, eyes trained on Nicky, "it's that he thought the bloody long sword would be a good idea for you!"

"It's a perfectly fine and noble weapon, we used these for hundreds of years -"

Andy interrupts him, tears streaming over her face, "Noble, you say? Fucking clumsy and barbaric!"

She has to sit down after that and Joe bangs his head on the car, shaking it in disbelief. Nile doesn't understand the hurt flickering across Nicky's face, doesn't get the joke.

Joe manages to stand up straight and look at her out of wet eyes, "I'm sorry, Nile, it's just - the fucking long sword? Nothing could be less graceful, less suited for you to use! The long sword is no sword for you, it relies on strength and momentum, the wielder hurls it, rather than swings it, its cuts are chops, it's hacking, rather than cutting."

He needs to take a deep breath, his lips twitch as if he could still break into laughter again if prompted a bit. Nicky scoffs and this time, Nile hears the disapproval.

"What do you suggest then; a scimitar?" The air between them is charged, the challenge undeniable, "Nile asked me to show her and I did. The sword is a perfectly fine weapon and effective in what it's supposed to do. We don't all have the grace of a Yusuf al-Kaysani, to start dancing in the middle of a fight."

"No," Joe shakes his head, serious now, "no, Nile neither needs the graceless convulsions of a swordfighter, nor the embellishments and flourishes of a scimitar. You need something you can handle as a side arm, along the fire arm you carry."

He looks at her, eyes enquiring as if she can tell him. Every now and then, he makes sure Nicky is still there but he lets him work it out, doesn't interrupt his train of thought. Joe says a few words in an old language and Nile sees Nicky roll his eyes, hears him huff out a breath.

"900 years," he says quietly, "900 years and he still calls me uncivilised!"

She knows this kind of teasing between them and continues to watch Joe, unsure of what to expect from him once he has an idea. She is no longer sure what it is about, anymore and leaves the sword to sit down in front of the house.

It takes Joe a few minutes of hushed discussions with Nicky but then, he points at her, "You need a Dirk."

"A what now?"

Something is dropped into her lap as Andy stalks past her. She disappeared without anyone noticing before but turns to look at her, now with what seems to be a sheathed dagger in her hands.

"A Dirk," she says, "they used it for drummers and officers who didn't have their hands free. Long dagger that damages a lot when your gun doesn't cut it, easily wielded with one hand and able to defeat someone using a slow long sword, too."

Nile thinks Nicky might be close to cursing.

"You can learn how to use it," Andy nods at her, "and once you can do that, wielding a long sword is child's play."

Nicky doesn't disagree.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on [Tumblr](https://died-by-the-scimitar.tumblr.com/)!


End file.
